The Karnataka Congress has expelled their state media coordinator MA Salim for 6 years after a video of him accusing state party president DK Shivakumar of bribery along with former MP VS Ugrappa went viral. The party has sent a show-cause notice to Ugrappa for the same.
Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee media coordinator Saleem Ahmed expelled from Congress for 6 months. India Today’s Nagarjun Dwarakanath (@nagarjund) shares more information.#ITVideo #Karnataka pic.twitter.com/PGX4Aym9eS
— IndiaToday (@IndiaToday) October 13, 2021
After the video was shared extensively on various social media platforms, the matter was sent to the Karnataka Congress disciplinary committee. The committee, in turn, decided to expel media coordinator MA Salim and send a show-cause notice to Ugrappa.
Following the disciplinary action on the Congress leaders, Ugrappa justified their acts during a press conference that Salim was referring to the BJP’s claims about DK Shivakumar, not his own personal opinion of the senior leader. Ugrappa stated that he had told Salim not to speak, but that he had done so anyhow.
Ugrappa also refuted the corruption allegation levelled at DK Shivakumar and asserted, “DK Shivakumar is working for the people. Congress is far from ‘commission’ or corruption and we’re trying to build a corruption-free state.”
“Gets drunk, accepts bribe”, Karnataka Congress leaders badmouth own state party president
In the leaked video, which features former MP VS Ugrappa and the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee media coordinator MA Salim sitting in front of a table full of microphones from media houses, the latter can be heard discussing a “scandal” involving Congress leader DK Shivakumar, in which he and his associates are accused of receiving bribes.
“It was six to eight per cent before then it became 10 to 12 per cent. It is all DK adjustment. Mulgund (aide of DK) has made Rs 50-100 crore. Imagine if Mulgund has this, then how much DK has,” says Salim in the clip.
Salim further said: “His house is near SM Krishna’s house here in Bengaluru. This is a huge scandal and if you dig deeper, his (DK’s) name will also crop up. You are not aware sir, but Mulgund (DK Shivakumar’s aide) makes Rs 50-100 crore in collections. If he made Rs 50-100 crores collection, imagine how much DK would have made.”
The duo also discussed how the Karnataka Congress president is of no use to the party. In their exchange, the two also referred to Shivakumar as a “drunkard”.
They compare Shivakumar to senior Congress leader and former chief minister Siddaramaiah, and question if he is always in a state of intoxication because of his so-called stutter.
Ugrappa is then heard, “We all made DK the president (of KPCC) and this shows everything.”
DK Shivakumar slaps party workers in public
It may be noted that in July this year, a video had gone viral on the internet, where Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar was seen losing his cool after a party worker tried to approach him during his visit to Mandya. As the party worker tried to touch the Congress leader, DK Shivkumar got angry and slapped him on his face.
As DK Shivakumar realised that his act of arrogance was caught on the camera, he warned the media persons to delete the video.
This was not the first time that DK Shivakumar was seen attacking common party workers in public. In 2018, during a Congress election campaign in Bellary, DK Shivakumar had slapped another man who wanted to take a selfie with him.
Shivakumar has, meanwhile, said that he “doesn’t want to comment on this matter (but) the disciplinary committee will take strict action”.
